New Years Resolutions For The Utah Jazz
By Greg Foster
November 21, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder (second from right) instructs his team in a huddle during the third quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Jazz 101-88. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Hello to all you good people of Jazzland! I hope the holidays have all treated you super well and that you got everything you wanted for Christmas. In the spirit of the years end, I thought the best way to follow up my Christmas wish list column was to pen a few New Years resolutions for our beloved Utah Jazz.
It’s the time of year for reflection and action. You hear it in day-to-day conversations, spoken by personal trainers and plastered all over every channel of social media: “new year, new me.” All over the globe, people are writing down that they want to lose weight, save money, travel, workout more and every other clichéd January 1st goal.
Like everyone else I have my fair share of resolutions I’m working towards for 2015. However, I’m not looking forward to the influx of semi-motivated wingdings clogging up my local gym—taking up all the parking spots and occupying every square inch of the elliptical machines and bicep curl bars—only to quit halfway through February, never to return.
At any rate, the “new year, new me” train of thought couldn’t be more fitting for the Utah Jazz. To put it lightly, this team has struggled over the past few seasons. As fans, we’ve all experienced frustration, anger, bewilderment, heartache, pain and all the other negative emotions associated with a losing ball club. So what better time than right now for the Jazz to turn over a new leaf and get back to the good ol’ days of long-tenured success.
The first resolution for the Jazz is not to become complacent with losing. Former Jazz General Manager, Kevin O’Connor, said it best when he talked about the team not developing “a culture of losing.” We all know the Jazz are far removed from being competitive in the NBA, but the Jazz must not become accepting of it.
During this team’s time of development and growth, it would be easy to merely roll over and admit defeat. This can’t be accepted. Not one bit. The Jazz must fight like hell right now in order to set the precedent for future success. And with the Western Conference being arguably the best conference of all time, the road isn’t going to be easy.
Adversity can mold strength. That’s what the Jazz have to remember when they struggle.
The pieces for winning are beginning to find their place within this team. We saw it on the pre-Christmas road trip, where the Jazz went 3-3 and more so, with the Jazz currently winning back-to-back games at home. Granted, those two games were against the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves, but winning 5 of the last 8 games—a 62.5 winning percentage—is a nice step in the right direction.
The next resolution falls as much on us fans as it does on the players: The Energy Solutions Arena needs a return to form.
Before the name change, back in the Delta Center days, there wasn’t a more intimidating or ruthless place to play in the Association. The words “home-court advantage” never rang truer. The Utah Jazz fan base could only be described as rabid. And if you don’t think that intimidation factor helped the Jazz win a boatload of games, well then, I’ve got some beachfront property in Kansas I can sell you.
Go ahead and watch some Jazz games from the 90’s and see how terrified opposing teams were when the noise blasting from the Delta Center was damn near shattering their eardrums.
Maybe this team should watch some of those old Under Armour commercials, to learn what it means to “protect this house.” Losing at home isn’t something this franchise is used to and being able to capitalize and feed off of its crowd should be paramount.
Conversely, for the first time in what felt like forever, the energy was back in the ESA last night against the Timberwolves—I can vouch for this; I was there. During the fourth quarter comeback, there was a resurgence of yesteryear electricity in the building. That boost of energy was felt by the players and no doubt helped them seal the victory. In fact, Gordon Hayward commented on the crowd in his post game interview—skip to the 1:27 mark to hear it.
Another resolution I’d like to see the Jazz make is playing with an edge. Hell, I’ll go a step further and say I want the Jazz to play angry. We all fell in love with coach Quin Snyder’s infamous “wake up” moment against Oklahoma City earlier this season. It shook the players up enough to make them realize they were playing like a garbage pile. The result was a Fantastic Four like clobbering of the Thunder for the rest of the game.
Fast forward to last night, when Shabazz Muhammad knocked down a three-pointer to give the Wolves a 10-point advantage over the Jazz in the fourth quarter. Upon hitting the shot, Muhammad turned to the Jazz bench and did the infamous three goggles.
Immediately after, an infuriated Quin Snyder called a timeout and proceeded to not say a word. Instead, he stared at his players in sheer disgust for the duration of the timeout. The “I’m not mad, just disappointed” coaching method worked. The Jazz came out in a fury, quelling the Wolves lead and earning the W.
I think the strategy is pretty obvious: play mad, boys, play really mad.
Speaking of Shabazz Muhammad, the Jazz really need to stop letting players score their career highs against them.
Years ago, players like Ray Allen, Michael Redd and Linas freaking Kleiza were torching the Jazz for their personal bests. This year, you can add Shabazz, Anthony Davis and Kyle Lowry to the list. This should never be acceptable. Ever.
Look, I know it’s the NBA, where the talent is otherworldly and players are going to get red hot, but defense should be both a point of emphasis and pride. Always. Having a player post a career best against you or your squad should be enough to make you sick and lose sleep. More so, it should be enough to ensure it never happens again.
Lastly, this young Jazz team should make a resolution to take advantage of opportunity that comes their way. I know this is a cliché thing to say, but it fits with the game plan of a young team searching to find its identity. Experimenting with lineups and minutes is inevitable and players are going to get opportunities to make their mark. In a league this loaded with talent and depth, those opportunities are rare and should be treated with a serious sense of urgency.
Take for example, Rodney Hood, with Alec Burks out for the season, he’s got a ripe opportunity to prove himself as a viable asset for the Jazz. It goes for players like Dante Exum and Rudy Gobert as well. Both are working towards more minutes and starting positions. When the opportunity presents itself to prove their worth, it’s of the utmost importance to have put in the necessary time and work to profit.
The future is looking mighty bright for the Utah Jazz. After a rough start to the season, we’re seeing the comprehension level of this team rise and more wins should be in the future. If the Jazz can commit to these resolutions, there’s no doubt they’ll be a better ball club in 2015.
Happy New Year, Jazz fans. May this new year be filled with happiness, success, love and whatever else you need to be a better person—unless you’re one of those elliptical-hogging wingdings at my local gym.